Another movement with mixed reviews is performing handstand push-ups while pregnant.

I have looked into it a lot and always find conflicting theories. None of which seem all that scientific, but I guess that is the way it goes with pregnancy as it is deemed unethical to test on pregnant women, for obvious reasons.

The main point against handstand push-ups (HSPU’s) I found were:

Risk of falling

Elevated blood volume so higher risk of dizzy spells and fainting

Too much abdominal pressure

Risk of the cord wrapping around the babies neck

Risk in the first trimester as attachment of the embryo is still occurring.

Mainly what I read from CrossFitters was to carry on if you have done them in the past and are competent getting up and down from the wall safely and if they feel ok. Fine, I am confident kicking up and coming down from a wall (free standing handstands/handstand walking is a completely different ball game for me. ALWAYS end up flat on my back no matter how many time I learn to bail out correctly!)

(13+4 weeks. 2 strict & 2 kipping)

They have always been one of my strengths and a movement I really enjoyed so I was desperate to keep them in my workouts.

The first trimester I was gutted. They made me feel shit, just one would send my head and stomach spinning. Even though the first trimester was basically a write off anyway, I probably did a total of 5 HSPU in 10 weeks.

By week 11 I was feeling better; more in control of my body, less/no nausea, less fatigue so clearer head (baby brain is REAL!! And completely different to tired brain fog!).

I decided to give HSPU another go. I had learnt about the benefits of inversions in yoga and figured aside from the pressing action, which is really not much different to a strict/push press, HSPU must carry some of the same benefits.

Here are some of the benefits I found while researching:

From Geeta Iyengar’s Yoga: a Gem for Women and David Coulter’s Anatomy of Hatha Yoga.

Sirsasana (Headstands)

Ensures proper blood circulation to the uterus

Creates space in the pelvic cavity for the baby to move around

Relieves venous pressure in the legs, which may relieve and prevent varicose veins

Promotes hormonal balance by increasing blood flow to the head and neck. This is especially good for the thyroid gland, as a deficiency in thyroid hormone can lead to miscarriage.

As far as the chord being wrapped around the babies neck; as many as 25-40% of babies are born with the chord wrapped around the neck. One of the first thing the midwife will do once the head is out is to check the chord is free, and if not they will slip a finger under and pull it back over the head. Oxygen is supplied from the umbilical chord inside the womb not through the trachea.

I completed a workout today (13+4 weeks) which included 30 HSPU’s. I had to break them up into 3 sets of 10 as they are tougher now I’m heavier, but otherwise felt good and resting on my head was quite refreshing! The only alteration I am making is to go a little wider with my knees on the kip to accommodate an ever growing bump.

I will keep updating this post as I progress through my pregnancy as things may change, but for now handstand push-ups are back in 😀

After completing three online qualifying workouts team Big Bitch Little Bitch (the beautiful Jo Gamblin – aka Gambo, aka Childish Gambino, aka Head Bitch and I) had qualified to compete at the first Double Impact competition. A same sex pairs comp open to national and international Crossfitters but held at the Mount Battern Centre running track in Portsmouth. Run by local coaches I know and respect, with teams made up of close friends including my sister and my first time on a running track since my far from sporty school days. I was excited!

Gambo was one of the first to find out about my pregnancy and Double Impact soon came into question. Deciding we would just have a bit of fun would take each WOD as it came we were set on remaining in the competition.

With 3 weeks to go all the WODs had been released. The first – 400m run each, then 30 clean and jerks @ 40kg and 30 toes to bar, split as we liked. The run I was a little apprehensive about as I knew we were in a heat with some excellent runners (Gemma Legs Green for one!) but comfortable with the C & J and T2B. Pull-ups and dips may be harder with 6kg extra bodyweight but bar work is feeling a lot stronger!

The second WOD was a max weight complex of 1 clean, 2 hang cleans, 3 shoulder to over heads, 4 front squat, 2 hang cleans, 3 shoulder to over head, 4 front squats – without dropping the bar. Your score is the combined max weight of your team. Fine, I could go lighter and we could still set a decent score as Gambo is a powerhouse!

I had emailed the organisers as I thought they might want to know in advance I would be 15 weeks pregnant by comp time, incase they wanted us in a different heat or I needed a different waiver etc. Didnt hear anything so assumed all was fine.

No news is not always good news.

The delay in reply was down to them struggling to decide if I should be allows to compete. They concluded the answer was no 🙁 Gutted!

Nothing against them at all! I do completely understand where they are coming from. They don’t want to risk me doing any damage to myself or the baby, I may not be covered in their event insurance, and they have put a lot of work into organising this, they probably want everyone to take it seriously. Absolutely no beef 🙂

That doesn’t mean I won’t be sad to be sat on the side lines!

I’m sure some will call me irresponsible for even considering it. Non-Crossfitters may look at the workouts and be disgusted a pregnant woman would ever put herself in that position. But I know myself, I know my capabilities and I know that these workouts were within limitations when pregnant.

I should mention I had already qualified for and pulled out of Pound for Pound, a singles competition where weights are based on your bodyweight. As a 5ft (previously) 55kg CrossFitter I am strong for my size. This would have been a good comp for me, however there was no partner to take some of the load and it was a comp I wanted to take seriously. I didn’t think it would be responsible to take part in this one – not to mention I am now 61kg so all lifts would be heavier 😛

Spectating at Double Impact will be tough. I’ll be gagging to get on the track, but I will sit there with my pom-poms, cheer on my fellow athletes and eat some self-pitying cake.

I would like to add a public apology to Gambo for my inconsiderate timing in getting knocked up.

I am back! And loving it! THIS is what my friends meant about loving pregnancy!!

So what have a noticed with training?

I get hot, VERY hot, VERY quickly! I am ensuring I drink a lot and am now the gym fan hogger. I am now one of those girls that takes their top off every workout, showing off a bloated bulge rather than the abs I had (on a good day).

I make sure I can still hold a bit of a conversation throughout WODs (much to the joy of my patient coaches 😉 ) Not too slow, probably an RPE (rate of perceived exertion) between 6-8 rather than 8-10 depending in how I feel each day.

I try not to worry about what the leaderboard says. Not that I was overly competitive before but it was a good guide of where I should be/what I should be lifting. Although our box is friendly and supportive, and I’m sure no one actually gives a shit, the feeling of being judged for only completing 7 rounds when others are on 10 still lingers in the back of your mind. I will be glad when everyone knows.

I have found days vary. Sometimes overhead pressing/jerks feel fine, other times they make me lightheaded. The days they feel good I do them, the days they don’t I stop.

Handstand push-ups made me feel really light headed between the 8-10 week mark, maybe where I now have double the blood volume. Although editing this post at 12 weeks I completed a 21-15-9 of HSPU, dips and push-ups the other day and the HSPU were the nicest part!

Bodyweight – pull-ups, dips, push-ups, HSPU got harder as I got heavier. Doing every WOD with and extra 4-6kg does make a difference!! Although bar work is slightly easier with more weight under the bar.

Our bodies really are wonderful creations! It actually is a lot easier to read my bodies signals as to what is good and what isn’t than I thought . So as much as the ‘listen to your body’ advice sounded vague, it all makes sense when you’re there.

First scan is 6th July. I’m so excited and can’t wait to enjoy the 2nd trimester.

The first can kiss my now even larger arse! Second trimester CrossFit is FUN!

As a personal trainer, knowing baby was on the cards at some point (sooner rather than later) I decided to do my pre and post natal training a few months back. Great for me when I did fall and great for potential clients.

From a PT perspective, to train the average pre/postnatal gym goer, the training was great. As a 2+ years CrossFit athlete, honestly I found the training pretty useless for training myself and other pregnant women through their CrossFit pregnancy! It was very much based on government guidelines; slow steady cardio and globo gym classes with a little bit of weight training thrown in.

When asked about high intensity training like CrossFit, Olympic lifting or powerlifting the trainer looked lost. Nothing against her, she knew her stuff otherwise and I didn’t really expect her to have an indepth knowledge of CrossFit, but I came away with no real knowledge of how I would train myself when the time came.

I started doing some research of my own and found a few women who kept training while pregnant. Lea-Ann Ellison and local Katja Harjanne made the news for CrossFitting while heavily pregnant, and have both since given birth to very healthy babies and look fantastic themselves! Body builder Jessie Hilgenberg has a great instagram account and Birthfit is full of pictures and videos of heavily pregnant women doing incredible things. CrossFitMom.com used to be fantastic help but has since been replaced by a page not hugely insightful.

The main comment I read while researching was ‘listen to your body’ which was all well and good.. But would I be able to translate what my body was saying? How do I tell the difference between a workout just being tough and my body saying you shouldn’t be doing this? Advice says not to overheat, but our box is a tin building and like a sauna the second the sun comes out.. Is that safe?

I understood the concept of working around a bump and scaling as the bump got in the way in the second and third trimester. But what about the first? The most dangerous trimester!? When one person says to take it easy and the other says keep going as normal until 20 weeks!?

My first doctors appointment was far from useful training wise. When I explained what CrossFit was (a combination of weightlifting, cardio and gymnastics – in a nutshell) her exact words were “well you’ll want to stop that and just do a bit of this” raising her arms over her head and out to the side in some 1970’s aerobic step class manner! Helpful!

So here I am, with the knowledge I have from training myself, PTing, self study and my pre and post natal course, but otherwise generally winging it and hoping I learn along the way, enough to actually provide some helpful information to ease the minds of fellow CrossFit Mum’s to be. I also hope blogging about my CrossFit pregnancy will help me with any further pregnancies of my own.

Pre-pregnancy check list:

Time crossfitting: 2 years

Bodyweight: 52-54kg

Sessions per week: 4-6 sessions, 1-2 hours.

1RMs:

Deadlift – 127.5kg

Back squat – 95kg (ish)

Front squat – 82.5kg

Strict press – 45kg

Push-press – 57.5

Clean and jerk – 70kg

Snatch – 42.5kg – Power 45kg

Overhead squat – 52.5kg

Weighted pull-up – bw + 24kg

Weighted dip – bw + 20kg

Fran time – 5.31

Grace time –

Isabel time – (shocking – but first time being able to RX it, at 42.5kg, my 1RM squat snatch!)

CrossFit Open 2015: top 6% in UK, top 8% in Europe, top 9% worldwide. CrossFit open 2016 will be approx 1 month postpartum.. We shall see!
Strengths: bodyweight, pistols, pull-ups, HSPU, clean and jerk.

Naomi Bazeley

Naomi is a CrossFit Level 2 Trainer.
If you are looking for one on one coaching, nutritional advice or you are interested in getting in to CrossFit, Naomi can work with you to help you to achieve your goals.